Two-banded plover description

As its name suggests, the two-banded plover is readily distinguished from most other wading birds by the presence of two conspicuous black bands around its white throat and breast (2)(3)(4). A black bar across its forecrown separates the white of the forehead and lores, from the pale chestnut of the crown and hindneck (2). Although the sexes are similar in appearance (4), areas of black tend to be more brown on the female, while the crown is duller and the upper breast band flecked with white. Outside of the breeding season, the adult plumage is noticeably muted, with black markings replaced by grey and chestnut by grey-brown. The juvenile is similar in appearance to the non-breeding adult, but tends to have a darker face and more brown in its breast bands (2). Owing to the high frequency of birds with a broken upper breast band, the Falkland Islands population is thought possibly to merit classification as a separate subspecies(2)(3).

Related species

Two-banded plover biology

The two-banded plover is known to feed on a variety of small invertebrates including polychaete worms, molluscs and crustaceans(2)(4)(5)(6). It mostly forages on the edges of surf and rockpools, or amongst rotting seaweed and coastal grasses (2)(4). Despite being a strong flier, rather than taking to the air, it usually flees from danger with an evasive run (4).

The nests are generally made in shallow scrapes in heath or grassland behind the beach (4), with most egg-laying occurring between September and December (2). Although the chicks leave the nest at an early age, it is common to see parents watchfully minding their offspring as they scurry along the beach (2).

Two-banded plover range

Breeding populations of the two-banded plover are restricted to Argentina, Chile, and the Falkland Islands, but many mainland birds migrate north as far as Uruguay and southern Brazil during the winter (2)(3)(4)(5).

Authentication

Glossary

Crustaceans

Diverse group of arthropods (a phylum of animals with jointed limbs and a hard chitinous exoskeleton) characterised by the possession of two pairs of antennae, one pair of mandibles (parts of the mouthparts used for handling and processing food) and two pairs of maxillae (appendages used in eating, which are located behind the mandibles). Includes crabs, lobsters, shrimps, slaters, woodlice and barnacles.

Invertebrates

Animals with no backbone.

Lores

The space between a bird's bill and eyes.

Molluscs

A diverse group of invertebrates, mainly marine, that have one or all of the following; a horny, toothed ribbon in the mouth (the radula), a shell covering the upper surface of the body, and a mantle or mantle cavity with a type of gill. Includes snails, slugs, shellfish, octopuses and squid.

Polychaete worms

Polychaeta means ‘many bristled’; this class of worms are segmented and bear many ‘chaetae’ (bristles).

Subspecies

A population usually restricted to a geographical area that differs from other populations of the same species, but not to the extent of being classified as a separate species.

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